Cure for the Common Hero: When Sang Met Mori
by V2
Summary: It all had to start somewhere... for a Tanker and a Controller, it happened on a rooftop in the middle of a Clockwork gathering. Features Moriyaku and the Sanguine Horror.


"Son of a BITCH!" Miranda Garren swore loudly from the roof of her apartment in Kings Row. She'd climbed out onto the fire escape to get some better service on her cell phone, but no bars blinked on the display. A climb to the top of the rusted metal stairs had provided her with a face-to-face encounter with a horde of Clockwork. As most of them diligently worked at removing pieces of the building's air conditioning system, one belligerent little cog saw her at the top of the stairs. Frantic beeps and whirs of gears echoed as a high-voltage blast shot in the young woman's direction. The swearing happened not because of the blast (even though it packed a helluva punch) but because of the now-smoking phone in her hands. She threw the charred casing at the mechanical flunkie who chirped with momentary delight at the prospect of new electronics to pillage.

Before Miranda could blink, a heavy thud on the rooftop sent the group of Clockwork scattering. The phone scavenger flew off the rooftop, landing in a heap on the pavement before a delivery truck unceremoniously crushed it. She whirled about in time to see a heavy spiked mace swing in a wide arc through a smaller group of oscillators. The mace wielder kicked the last whirring bot with a heavy boot, his face devoid of expression. He tuned back to Miranda, shouldering the weapon and nodding down at her.

Her response, while intended to be thankful, came across as a bit ungracious in retrospect. "Nice show. Still can't call for takeout, but hey, I appreciate it." She stuck out a hand and grinned, but the much-taller mutant scowled down at her.

"Isn't your well-being more important than a phone?" The red armor glinted in the afternoon light, making the hero appear even more threatening. Red armor, red hair, red tinge to skin… it seemed overly angry on an otherwise calm day.

Miranda coughed and played with a strand of her hair. "Well, yes," she began. "At the same time, I was sort of hungry. The only place around her for good Chinese takeout always has a wait, so it's worth it to call ahead and just pick up." She squinted up at the hero, shielding her eyes. "You got a name, Red?"

His scowl deepened; clearly, the moniker she'd used didn't sit well with him. "Sanguine Horror," he rumbled after a moment. "Tanker."

"Duh. You're too big to be anything but," she shot back, voice full of playful sarcasm. "How about a real name? You got one of those?"

"Why do you want to know?" Arms folded across his chest, he didn't appear comfortable with her questioning.

She rolled her eyes at him. "Because I do. If I wanna ask you out to dinner, conversation's gonna be weird if I have to keep calling you 'Sanguine Horror' every other minute." She tapped her nose and gave him a confident smile. "Folks call me Miranda. Miranda Garren."

He eyed her with a degree of distrust, silence between them as long as the afternoon shadows on the rooftop. After a moment, he spoke again. "Hardy. Rufus Hardy, but most people just call me Hardy." He paused, frowning at her again with curiosity rather than annoyance. "Dinner?"

Miranda beamed up at him. "Yeah, dinner. We all gotta eat, right?"

"Yeah… yeah, right," he agreed slowly. "Uh, can I ask you something?" Hardy waited for her to nod before continuing. "What were you doing on a roof in Kings Row?"

"I have lousy reception in my apartment," she quipped. "Besides, it was a nice afternoon, and I figured- HEY!" She spun around to face a pair of Skulls on the fire escape. "What did I say about coming back here? I told you, stay away from my building, or so help me…" She pointed a bandaged finger at them, muttering under her breath. The air in front of her rippled for a moment, before both of the intruders clutched at their temples. Tripping over each other, they clambered down the metal stairs, groaning in pain. A satisfied smile on her face, she turned back to her would-be rescuer. Rufus Hardy stared open-mouthed at the young woman who grinned and put her hand out again for a second introduction.

"Moriyaku," she chirped. "Mind Controller. You still gonna let me take you out for dinner?"


End file.
